A Brief Look into the Beauty That is Life
by Yammyg123
Summary: One, a young dancer searching for a way to fly. Two, a young man searching for an escape from poverty. Three, a small shop that bridges the chasm between two very different worlds. contains quite a bit of allenalee (allenxlenalee)
1. Previews

**Yo it's author here. I finally added the second teaser and fixed all the errors in the first one. I'd also like to appologize for the original author's note this thing had. God damn I regret being fourteen. Happy reading ^^**

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"One two three," I whisper to myself, the rhythm of ten thousand hours of practice drilled into my head. "One two three" as I tie the ribbons around my legs. "One two three," as I stretch out, and prepare myself. "One two three," as I clench my teeth and rise up onto my toes.

"One two three," I'm dancing, and there is no music. I know the routine too well to need it. I see ten thousand carbon copies of myself flash through the corners of my eyes. My hair wraps around me as I spin.

"One two three," I abandon my routine, and dance for the simple pleasure of dancing. A hand reaches to my head, and I un-clip my hair, letting it flow rivers around me. I step out of one turn and into another, never stopping. I'll be dizzy when I stop, and If I spin without stopping much longer it will hurt my feet, but I've stopped caring.

"One two three, One two three," I let my momentum of my movements carry me back towards the center of the room, and settle into an even pattern. For two beats each time, my eternity of clones in the mirror spiral past. For just one beat, I stop spinning and throw myself into the next turn.

"Step two three, step two three." I say the pattern out loud and let the monotony of repetition bring my mind slowly closer to reality. With one final turn I'm in the center of the studio once again. Then my body stops spinning, but the rest of the world doesn't. I collapse to the floor, and stare into the spiraling lights that are fixed into the spinning ceiling. My head hurts.

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"One two three, one two three," I lock into the speed of the throbbing behind my eyes. The familiar rhythm slows the rotating world to a stop. The throbbing slows and then disappears completely, leaving me with only the beating of the words in my mind. "One two three."

"One two three," I whisper familiar words to myself as I try to assure that I am living. "One," breathe in; "two," feel my heartbeat, "three," breathe out. This simple rhythm keeps me alive, keeps my mind wide and awake. I know I'm finished if I fall asleep. It's much too cold and much too late to sit outside unmoving for that long. I need to keep the one two three, my simple three step waltz of life.

"One two three" I smile when the music starts in the building above me. It's classical, and I think it's a waltz. The three beat lines up with my repeated words. "One two three."

"One two three" I pull my scarf tighter as I watch the girl upstairs dance. The windows are small, but I can tell from glimpses that it's some kind of dance studio, and that there's a beautiful girl there.

"One two three," I think the music was lulling me to sleep, but I still can't be happy it stopped. It looks like the girl is still dancing though. She was probably just warming up before.

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**So that's that. Next one should be a proper chapter, so look forward to that at least. I'm gonna try to update at least semi-regularly. **


	2. Chapter 1

I wake up to a scream. There's a beautiful woman looming over me, her face the image of concern. There's a moment of mutual shock, and then she shrieks again. I try to stand and try to calm her, but I'm too weak even to stand. Instead, I give her a wry smile and say, "think you could call me some help? I'm afraid I may be dying."

"Right." She seems a little less panicked now, which is good. I watch her fumble with her phone, and her fingers shake as she dials 911. Even in this state, she's lovely. Her face gives off this impression of an incredible kindness, which of course only adds to her beauty. I smile as the world fades out again.

Lenalee~

I wring my hands nervously as I sit by the hospital bed. The boy in it is unconscious and hooked up to an IV. The doctors told me he was starving. I hadn't realized when I first saw him, but he's bone thin. I'm just glad I found him when I did.

"nnnn"

I jump, startled, and yell for a nurse. The boy's eyes flutter open for a moment, but he winces them shut when he sees the light. I stand and put my hand on his to assure him. "The nurse is coming."

He moans. "Am I in a hospital?"

"How observant of you."

"Shit. I can't pay for this."

"That should not be your first concern when you wake up in a hospital bed."

Before he could respond, the nurse came in and ushered me out. She said that visiting hours were over and I'd simply have to come back the next day.

Allen~

Once I regained consciousness fully, the nurse insisted on questioning me. Apparently I had passed out from exposure, but she was more concerned about me weight. I had to explain that, yes, I am completely sure I'm not anorexic one time too many. I'm just poor, homeless, and too proud to steal or go to a shelter. She frowned when I said homeless.

"Sorry, I'm not entirely sure how I'm gonna pay for this either. Wasn't my idea."

Her eyes softened a bit. "Don't worry kid. I think you'll find that won't be a problem." She flashed a knowing smile and walked out of the room.

Alone with my thoughts, I felt myself slipping back into my usual rhythm. I listened to the slow, steady beeping of the medical equipment. The slow pace soon lulled me to sleep as I counted one... two... three.

I wake up in the morning to the girl from the day before sitting by my bed. Her face lights up when she sees me. God she's pretty

"Morning sleepyhead." She smiles. I look away, my face growing hot. Thankfully, I seem to have regained my strength overnight as I manage to push myself up into a sitting position. Looking back to her with a quizzical look, I have to ask,

"Who... are you?"

"Right, sorry. I'm Lenalee Lee, the girl who found you passed out in an alley."

"Sorry we had to meet lilke that. I've never actually passed out before."

"It's fine, just don't do it again." There is laughter in her voice, I'm greatful to find.

We sit in silence for a few minutes. I roll her name around in my head. It felt vaguely familiar, as though it was tied to some distant memory. Just as I surrender to the fact that I'm not going to figure it out, it comes to me. I'm suddenly thrown back to high school, talking about girls with a gang of other boys. One of them brings up the name Lenalee, the rich and pretty sister of the chairman of the city's university. Gorgeous, wealthy, and slightly older, she was our perfect girl without a doubt.

Back in reality, I look up at the real live perfect girl sitting next to me. The fact that she was still there made her even more perfect. She's gorgeous, wealthy, older, and impossibly kind.

"Hey uh..."

"Yes?" she jumps and looks down at me.

"You wouldn't happen to be _the_ Lenalee Lee would you?"

"The one and only." Her expression dropped a bit. "I guess I should've figured you'd recognize me."

Before I could reply, the nurse bustled into the room. Beaming, she announced, "Allen Walker, you're free to go." I sighed with relief and set about switching my hospital gown for some proper clothing. Being back in my old rags was both disappointing and comforting.

Outside the room, I'm shocked to find Lenalee leaning against the wall and holding the scarf she gave me. We stop and stare at each other. I'm frozen with shock and her face is made of pure determination. She steps forward and puts her scarf around my neck once again. "Don't try to fight it, you're coming home with me."

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**Was this incredibly late? yes. Do I have an excuse? no. I'm just lazy. Anyway thanks for reading. Reviews are appreciated**


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